The Tended Home
An Analog Day to Care for the Rooms that Care for You
The Tended Home: An Analog Day to Care for the Rooms that Care for You is the first of three little books that I am writing for you to stay awake, connected and cared for in your real life and your digital world. I am starting here because this is where we start and finish our days.
Stay tuned for Books 2 & 3. Hello World: An Analog Day in Real Places with Real People and The Perfect Internet: Digital Tools for A Better Life.
Now, back to where we start…
Introduction
This guide is made for you if:
You know you need a day without your phone
You are ready to exchange convenience for simplicity
You want to hear your own thoughts again
You want to focus on a project without distraction
You want to spend quality time with someone important to you
You need your home to be a place that takes care of you
You want space to enjoy an old hobby or discover a new one
Maybe you’ve wondered what your life could hold, and what it could be free of, if you were no longer tethered to this little god with all the answers. Or maybe you’ve watched a movie made before 2006 and felt the ache for a world where tiny screens didn’t rule the day.
You want it. You just don’t know how to do it.
All we’re talking about here is 24 hours. One day. Not a spa day. Not a sick day. Not a retreat. Not even a day off work. Just a day with no internet.
If that sounds hard, it’s because it is. Our default mode is to check, scroll, refresh, and binge. Habits we never consciously chose, yet repeat all day long. We will always default to these behaviors unless we design something we want more. If you want to live in the real, to experience the real, you have to reclaim the spaces that matter to you. In our culture today, real is by design, not by default.
How I Live and Why
Not everyone can, or wants, to live like I do. My hope in writing this is simply to give you a taste of my life. (Okay, maybe for your mental health too.)
In 2015, I got rid of my smartphone. In 2016, I deleted all of my social media accounts. This was after witnessing the mental and emotional effects my phone was having on me, not to mention on my kids and my clients. Since then, I’ve researched, studied, experimented, written, and spoken about the intersection of media and mental health to people of all ages and walks of life.
This is my life’s work: finding the sweet spot where we can benefit from the internet’s opportunities while still living a simple, deep, natural life that honors what’s best about being alive.
Today, I live with clear containers. I have a phone* that calls and texts. I go somewhere specific to get online. When my laptop is closed, I am offline.
That means:
When I’m home, I’m home
When I’m driving, I’m driving
When I’m hiking, I’m hiking
When I’m with friends, I’m with friends
When I’m working, I’m working
As zen as it sounds, I am where I am. Which is not a spiritual declaration, though I will not deny it brings moments of clarity (it also brings boring moments and panic moments). It is just me, being me, in real life.
At home, I bake, clean, read, water plants, play games, write letters, make lists, host dinners. I glue and mend things. I fold clothes, wash dishes, take out the trash, and stock the fridge. I tend the spaces that hold me, the places that care for me when I care for them in return.
When I’m “at work,” I email, research, budget, design, plan, and write. Because my time online is limited, I don’t waste it. I go there with intention and leave when I’m done. Do you ever wonder if most online dysfunction would disappear if we only used the internet in public?
This life doesn’t feel deprived or require tremendous discipline. It just feels do-able. When I log on, I’m amazed by what’s available. When I cross the threshold back into my cozy home, I’m free.
And I am enjoying movies and music more than ever. I have a radio, records, and DVDs. Entertainment is chosen, not fed to me. Last night I read books, listened to the radio, and let conversation unfold naturally in the spaces the internet once occupied.
Your Home, Your Day
This book is about being in the spaces that need your care and that care for you in return. Each chapter is anchored in something you can touch, somewhere you can be:
The AM Bedroom: waking up intentionally and starting your day with care
The Kitchen: nourishing yourself, others, and your home with simple and delicious meals
The Living Room: creating spaces for leisure, hobbies, and connection
The Desk: systems that keep your home functional
The Closet: tidying and creative organization for making loving what you wear easy
The Bathroom: small rituals that care for your body
The Staircase: using hallways and walls for inspiration and expression
The Garden: being nourished by sunshine, plants, fresh air, fire pits
The PM Bedroom: letting your dreams hold your problems
By moving through these spaces, you will tend your home, your routines, and yourself. Each room offers opportunities to slow down, notice, repair, organize, and enjoy.
Starting Your Analog Day at Home
If you want a taste of your own life, just you, life, and whoever else shows up, keep reading. This is just the introduction!
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*My Phone: It literally has my name. It is The Wise Phone and I am obsessed with it. If this is your year to experiment with a phone that is made for you, owned by you…use THIS LINK and the coupon code MEDIATOX for $25 off.
Design Your Day Call: One hour where we design your personalized analog day that works in your real life, wherever you are.
$222 · 60 minutes · Doxy or Phone
The Real Life Experience: A full, fun-filled day combining coaching, reflection, lunch, massage, mindful outings and a few surprises. Designed to reset your rhythm, SPaRK, clarity, and bring calm and focus back into your life.
$1975 · Historic Franklin, TN · Full Day
*If you have any questions, want more details or need a time that is not available on the schedule, you can reach me at 615.392.0096 or jenniferwiseblack@gmail.com.